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Last week, JYUOpen buzzed with an excitement of a novel kind: We were honoured to welcome an international group of reviewers with the task of assessing the quality of e-learning at JYUOpen.

As a result of the quality audit, JYUOpen hopes to earn an E-xcellence label.

The E-xcellence label is granted by the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities – or EADTU for short – which is Europe's leading institutional association for online, open & distance higher education.

JYUOpen praised for its dedicated staff

The label, when awarded, is a testament to the high-quality setting for digital teaching and learning fostered within an open university. The rigorous E-xcellence quality assessment process focuses on universities’ blended and online education performance and it involves benchmarking, guided self-assessment, and the expert assessment of the institution by EADTU.

“The assessment doesn’t necessarily include an on-site visit, but it is nicer to get the in-person experience, seeing how people interact with each other. You get a better feel for the university this way,” tells Professor Anja Oskamp, former president of EADTU and rector of the Open Universiteit of the Netherlands, now E-xcellence reviewer.

The EADTU reviewers spent two days in Jyväskylä examining JYUOpen’s strategy and management processes, curriculum development, course design and delivery, assessment, staff and student support practices, and more.

“You can see the dedication of the teachers and other staff we have heard from. It’s clear that JYUOpen is very student-centred and flexible. We get a sense of the range of students who make use of the courses offered here.”

Dr Jon Rosewell, a Senior Lecturer at the UK Open University, is also a reviewer, but his role within E-xcellence extends further: he co-wrote the set of benchmarks against which JYUOpen is now being evaluated.

“The JYUOpen team have done a very thorough self-evaluation on the benchmarks we have laid out, and they have designed a roadmap with which to proceed in their development work. Our job now involves helping the team reflect on their practices and what can then be shared onwards,” Rosewell explains.

I like to think of E-xcellence as a critical friend: we come in and say, ‘Did you think of this? Have you considered that?’

“I like to think of E-xcellence as a critical friend: we come in and say, ‘Did you think of this? Have you considered that?’ We provide education organisations the opportunity to look at themselves from a different perspective, which I think is very valuable”, Oskamp contemplates.

Quality is created in day-to-day work

“Quality is an essential issue to the Open University, not least because the Ģ��ֱ�� is known for its high-quality education, and we are of course keen to maintain an equally high standard at JYUOpen as well”, explains Jukka Lerkkanen, Director of JYUOpen.

Lerkkanen describes the auditing process as intensive but gratifying.

We wanted to have a straightforward discussion that reflects our day-to-day work

“E-xcellence is a great tool for us to develop our quality because it allows us to measure our operation against the highest European standards. We made a point of not just presenting the positives and strengths of our operation. We wanted to have a straightforward discussion that reflects our day-to-day work, because the day-to-day is where quality gets created,” Lerkkanen says.

“It was fascinating to reflect and evaluate our own operation in comparison to the benchmarks designed by EADTU. The process facilitated us in identifying our strengths and areas of development”, says Merja Karjalainen, Vice Director of JYUOpen.

Inquiries

Director Jukka Lerkkanen, jukka.lerkkanen@jyu.fi 0400 249 643
Vice Director, Head of Planning and Development Merja Karjalainen, merja.karjalainen@jyu.fi 050 441 3687